


The Remnant and the Cape

by Remnant_Writer (dyano86)



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: CatCo Worldwide Media, Clones, Double Life, Gen, Party, Red Daughter Supergirl, Red Sun Supergirl, Science Experiments, Siberian Kara Danvers, Siberian Supergirl, Talking to Oneself, The DEO | Department of Extra-Normal Operations, Time Loop, Time Renmant Supergirl, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-24
Packaged: 2019-05-25 13:37:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14978279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dyano86/pseuds/Remnant_Writer
Summary: Kara finds herself thrown through time, and after landing dazed and confused in Siberia, hopes to find her way home before too long.





	1. A Supergirl in a Far Off Land

**Author's Note:**

> Very inspired to write after the S3 finale! More Karas just makes this verse curiouser and curiouser.

It must have been days, maybe weeks, that Kara Zor-El slept at the strange Siberian outpost. Her memory was fragmented, like looking through mirrors upon mirrors trying to piece together the last moments she could recollect. Reign had been destroyed, but in the process, took so many lives that Kara held near and dear.

And then she flew — Kara flew as fast as she could through the ripples of spacetime, hoping to survive long-enough to grant herself a second chance.

That's when it had gone black; she recalled just vaguely wandering through the snowy tundra, naked as the day she was born, before stumbling into a Russian encampment and crumbling to her knees. That was many, many days ago, and her strength was just starting to return.

"Telephone," Kara mimed, and spoke the word especially clear, "Please. Telephone! I need to make a phone call!" The guards had been accommodating, but clearly unsettled by her sudden appearance on their borders. Still, as the days passed and Kara regained her wits, she knew that Alex needed to know she survived the trip. Who knows what assumptions her sister had made after days, maybe weeks, after Kara soared into space without leaving a trace behind.

Her friends must think she abandoned them, Kara realized. In their time of need, after facing grueling losses to Reign, Kara fled upwards in hopes to buy them more time. She had failed, and now was trapped here in Siberia with no means to reach home.

After a few more days of rest, maybe she could finally fly back stateside. In the meantime though...

"Telephone! Or Email? Please, anything..." 

The guards eventually brought her a TV. It's better than nothing, Kara realized, since it got decent reception of American news stations. She might be able to glean a few hints at how long she had been isolated, and what the aftermath had been to her beloved city.

Guardian had revealed himself to the public, officially this time. "Amazing," Kara whispered to herself, flipping through more newscasts to try and gain more intel about her far-off home.

That's when it happened.

"How..." Kara squinted at the screen. "Who is that?"

The news seemed simple-enough, covering a rather benign story about a runaway city bus and the daring rescue made by... Supergirl herself.

"Impostor!" Kara shouted, realizing suddenly that if there was a masquerading doppelgänger running amok in National City, her friends were in possibly more danger than even they realized. But slowly, as Kara made an effort to calm her heart-rate, the truth begin to filter inch-by-inch into her mind. Perhaps, it was possible, that this wasn't an imposter at all. Perhaps Kara succeeded in traveling back through the timestream, granting herself a second chance to save the day. Winn had ranted and raved about the dangers of time travel before, and Kara soon recalled a key detail he had been sure to stress over and over.

"Time remnant." She whispered the words, looking down at her hands as if to almost verify that she, herself, was real flesh and blood.

Kara was here, safe and sound in the Siberian north, and yet Kara had also made it back home in one piece. There were two of her, both with equal claim to the name.

She needed to get back home.


	2. A Covert Journey Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kara (the Siberian one) is cautious about her journey back to National City... probably for some very good reasons.

Her energy was still drained, but the weeks had gone by and her recovery had been sluggish, and Kara couldn't sit by and wait any longer. She needed to return home and, somehow, find out what had happened that night she defeated Reign.

Surprisingly, Russian news had done an adequate job of getting her up to speed. Supergirl was still milling about National City, and as far as Kara could tell, there was nothing notably bizarre about her behavior. Had Kara been gullible, she would have easily believed that Supergirl was alive and well. And yet, it was possible that Supergirl _was_ alive and well, even with her sudden and uncanny appearance in Siberia. Who knew which one was real, or even worse, whether both Karas had claim to the title.

With her energy levels still below normal, Kara wanted to avoid a direct supersonic flight back to the US. Instead, she made slow progress, just a few hundred miles each day, before stopping and resting along the way. Having lost all her clothes in the time  _incident_ , as she started to call it to herself, she donned a red cloak that wasn't flattering, but it would keep her identity masked for now.

Another two weeks passed before she set food on National City soil.

"Alright,  _Supergirl_ ," Kara whispered with a large dose of skepticism. "Where are you?"

It was a slow game of cat and mouse. Kara — the one who landed in Siberia — made sure to never travel in the daytime, and to always stick to the shadows. She didn't wander close to the DEO or to her apartment, out of fear that she'd be discovered by Alex or the other Kara and spark an immediate, hostile reaction. She trusted that Brainy would be able to help, but still, trying to approach him during these confusing times seemed like less and less of an option.

But all the while, Kara knew she needed to find someone trustworthy, and quick. In the last few weeks she had been either traveling by herself, or surrounded by Siberian guards — not really the type of company she liked to associate with. Her reality seemed twisted and backwards, with a duplicate of herself living seemingly a normal life back home... It almost made Kara question whether her memories were real; whether she was, in fact, the woman she thought herself to be.

Just two days into her sleuthing through National City, she spotter her—self. Supergirl, flying high en route to a daring rescue of civilians. It was just a blue blur at first, but within minutes Kara was able to catch up to her double. Sure enough, the woman was as authentic as they come. 

Yeah, she needed help. Preferably Alex.


	3. An Unwelcome Intruder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara Danvers, content with her life in National City after the defeat of Reign, has a suspicious feeling that she's being followed.

Kara was always hesitant to feel too optimistic about her dual life, but to be honest, this past month had been fairly easy sailing. Alex was making new waves as head of the DEO; James and Lena were content (it seemed) with the new reveal of Guardian to the city; and despite the departure of a few dear friends, Kara had managed to find herself happy with the new direction of her life as Supergirl.

Or so it seemed.

After manipulating the time-stream to get the best of Reign and save her loved ones, Kara was on-edge for a few days about what effects her stunt had played on spacetime as a whole. She waited hesitantly to hear about an aberration or side-effect of her hasty time-travel maneuver...but so far, so good. Nothing in National City seemed to be off its axis, so Kara resumed her normal daily super-heroine tasks without looking back.

"I'm telling you, Alex," Kara spoke rather chippy one afternoon in the DEO, "Things are feeling good, which is a surprise given how much garbage we've had to deal with over the last few months."

Alex sighed. From the look she gave Kara, it was clear she agreed. "Actually, I feel the same way." The two pulled up a screen of alerts and alarms triggered across the city, always on the lookout for anomalies worth investigating. "And it's still quite out there. There's only one image that Brainy asked us to look into, but I think it's just a glitch."

Kara leaned in to peer at the grainy security photo on the screen — it seemed mostly benign, except for a crimson red blur in the distance. "Possibly a speedster?"

"Possibly," Alex mused, "But it'd have to be traveling fast, almost at your top speed. It was spotted last week when you were on route to that bus rescue downtown. Still, we've scoured other other cameras and found nothing." She shrugged, "I think it's just a glitch in the camera system. Either that, or a superhuman with superspeed, flight, and an uncanny ability to avoid DEO detection."

Kara didn't share Alex's quickness to discount the anomaly. "I guess so," she feigned, all the while thinking of what — or who — could have been following her at such speed.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

The next few days, Kara made sure to keep a vigilant eye for anything whirring about the city, and on just a few occasions she was convinced there was more to this "glitch" than Alex had realized. It seemed like around corners, just out of range of her vision, there was a flicker of red before her stalker vanished into shadows.

Not to mention the unmistakable feeling that Kara was being watched, but that was more of a gut instinct than anything else.

Before long, though, she started to think that Alex and Brainy needed to give this anomaly a deeper look. It was late one evening, but Kara knew Alex would be awake and willing to chat — a quick flight over to her apartment wouldn't be too hard to fit in this evening.

Just as Kara began her descent towards Alex's building, though, again the blur of red caught her eye out of the periphery of her vision. This time, though, Kara seemed to have caught it first — with a quick, stealthy maneuver, Kara was able to remain covert and keep the red blur in her sight for just a moment longer. 

Even from a distance, she could tell that the blur was human — from the shape of her body, she looked female. The woman was cloaked in red, wearing a hood to obscure any clear look at her face.

And she was heading straight to Alex.

Kara didn't want to spook her stalker outright, so she kept her distance — all the while making sure that if the intruder was hostile, that she'd be able to leap into action at a moment's notice. Slowly, the red woman hovered down towards the window of Alex's room. Her approach didn't seem aggressive, but rather curious. Almost as if she was scanning the room to ensure that Alex was alone. Kara watched as the woman reached out to open a window and step foot inside her sister's home.

"Stop where you are!" Kara shouted, whizzing past the intruder with lightning speed into the apartment, taking a wide stance ready to combat the foe if she turned aggressive.

"Kara, what are you doing?!" Alex was in the other room, and came running to find Kara having burst through the window, staring down the hooded, cloaked figure. "What — Who is this?!"

"I'm not sure," Kara whispered. "I think she's that red blur from the image last week. She's been following me."

"I..." the woman in red stumbled over the words. "I'm not a threat."

Kara stepped forward, still ready for a fight. "Then show yourself!"

The woman hesitated, but slowly, brought two cloaked hands up towards her hood. As she pulled the fabric back, it revealed a slender, human-looking face, with long blonde hair.

"Who..." Alex spoke first, trying to understand how it was possible. "You're... Kara?"

Kara Danvers — the one clad in Supergirl's attire — shook her head in utter confusion. She was staring at...herself.

"I'm sorry," the Kara in red spoke sweetly. "But we have a lot to talk about."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really enjoying exploring this story! Might turn into a longer exploration that I had anticipated — if you have any suggestions for plot points, pass them along!


	4. Evaluation

Alex hated pacing, but she couldn't help it. Kara was being shockingly calm and even-headed throughout this entire ordeal — getting ambushed by a complete duplicate of oneself isn't an experience anyone should take lightly. Alex got even more stressed knowing that Kara might not be processing this healthily.

Or, maybe she was. It was such a bizarre phenomenon that Alex really didn't have any protocol to draw from. Perhaps staying calm-and-collected was normal for encountering a time-remnant doppelgänger. Who knew.

And yet, Alex couldn't help but pace back and forth through the corridors of the DEO. She seemed to be absorbing the stress from Kara — both of her. Not to mention the insane amount of paperwork required to classify this clone in the system. It was her first major disruption as director and it didn't help that J'onn was no where to be found. Any help at this point would be appreciated, and Kara...well Alex didn't really feel like venting to her in this case.

After a few long hours, the paperwork had finally been approved. With a quick series of phone calls, Alex was able to reach both Karas and call them into the lab for tests. "At least she didn't skip town," Alex sighed, "Or turn out to be evil. Yet." Alex had lent out her apartment to the Siberian-version of Kara while the other stayed at her own place. Until Brainy was able to take a look, she didn't want the two sharing the same room for too long. Who knew what disasters might happen, emotional or otherwise.

Knowing both Karas to know be on-site, Alex made her way down to Brainy's new lab at the far side of the building. It shouldn't have surprised her when she entered the sterile room and found herself looking at two identical Karas, matching hair and expressions, and donning two identical Supergirl suits to boot. 

"Oh!" Alex jumped. It was a shock to see them matching. "You found a second suit?"

Braniac 5 stepped out from behind a corner, test results flooding a tablet screen in his hands. "I felt it appropriate to avoid arousing suspicion, both in the DEO and in the public. I hope that's alright."

Alex nodded. "So, what's the verdict?"

"We ran as many tests as Brainy could think of..." One Kara started, pausing organically to let her time-double fill in the blanks.

"...But everything is perfectly identical. Down to the last bit of DNA."

Brainy didn't pull his eyes of the computer screen. "Actually, there is one slight difference." The two Kara's whipped around from Alex to stare at the android. "It appears that all DNA, all molecular proteins, match down to the atomic level. Even a clone grown from new cells wouldn't have this magnitude of similarities. It's not something I've ever observed before."

"But, there's a difference?" Alex tried to goad the man in the right direction.

"Yes," he continued, "If we look at trace strands of junk DNA as an estimate of age, although Kryptonians don't age in the same manner as humans, they still share this quality. It shows that one Kara is indeed just 9 minutes older than the other — likely a result of one being thrown from the timestream a cycle earlier than the other."

Alex head was spinning. She had anticipated that if the Karas were distinct in some — any — way, that it would be easier to sort out the next steps forward. If the two were truly identical, both with claim to Kara's life... What next?

"So," she paused, "Can I grab a word with Kara? The real one?"

Brainy cocked his head to the side, "I do not understand, they're both real."

"I mean..." Alex was getting a headache, "MY Kara. The one from National City."

The first Kara stood up, "That's me, Alex. Let's step outside."

Luckily, tensions remained calm as the two talked in the hallway outside Brainy's lab. Alex listed off a few dozen scenarios for how they could solve this problem, and what variables were worth reporting back to the DEO at large, but after a few moments it became clear Kara wasn't listening.

"You shouldn't have said that," was all she offered.

Alex was confused, "What do you mean?"

"You shouldn't have said I was the REAL Kara." She crossed her arms, "We're both real, and honestly, she's been through hell these last few weeks. Waking up naked and confused in Siberia and forced to spend days alone in a Russian outpost... She didn't chose that path, and it could have easily been me that wound up there. She's totally innocent and doesn't deserve to be treated any different than me."

"But Kara, she is different." Alex took a step forward and placed a hand on Kara's shoulder. "I've been living along side you for weeks, this other Kara... She hasn't shared those experiences. To me, you're real, and she's just... an echo."

At that, Brainy stuck his head out into the hallway. "Would you please rejoin us, please?"

Kara huffed as she walked back into the lab, and Alex actually found herself thanking Brainy for rescuing her from an impossible conversation.

"Please, sit," Brainy gestured for the first Kara to join her twin, "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation in the hallway and I have a potential solution." He turned to look at Alex, almost as if to wordlessly offer a lifeline from her struggle. "Because both Karas share the exact same neural structure, down to the very cells and molecules in the brain, I believe that I can bridge the gap between your cognitive patterns."

The two Karas stared upwards with matching, confused expressions.

Brainy continued, "Basically, I can sync your memories. I can make it so that you both remember landing in Siberia, and at the same time, you both remember staying in National City."

"Why would you do that?" It was Alex who interjected first.

"Because," one Kara answered, staring at her twin. "That way, we'd both share equal claim to our identity."

"She's right," the other affirmed. "It might be the only choice we have it we want to avoid one of us feeling isolated or rejected."

Alex couldn't truly understand Brainy's science, but she looked at the two Karas, the image of her sister in stereo, and understood her feelings. One felt impossibly isolated, and the other unavoidably guilty for having avoided the distress the other endured.

"Brainy, if this is really possible," Alex spoke softly, earnestly, "Then you have my support."


	5. Two Minds, One Kara

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara Danvers has had her world flipped upside down — twice. Now split into two bodies due to a aberration in the time stream, Kara struggles from two perspectives on how to best rectify her double life and move forward as a unified pair.

Everything was moving so fast.

Kara had only returned back to National City a few days ago, after being trapped, weak and confused, in the frozen north of Siberia for days after her defeat of Reign. Now, between stalking her double, being apprehended in Alex's apartment, and now subjugated to test after test after test by Brainy, it seemed like she finally had a chance to breathe.

And most bizarre during this entire ordeal... She had engaged at all with her double, the other Kara Danvers. Just a few fleeting words were exchanged upon their first meeting before Alex dutifully stepped in to run interference. It was probably the right call, to keep both Karas separated until all the testing was complete and the team could verify that there wouldn't be any further splits to the timestream. Alex had treated her kindly, but with distance — understandable given the situation, Kara thought to herself.

And then Brainy came along, eager to speak to both Karas, but never drifting too far away from treating the women like a science experiment gone awry. The two Karas were even escorted into the same room, donning matching Supergirl outfits to avoid suspicion, but still Brainy lead all the conversations as Kara — both of her — sat by waiting for instructions.

Not once had she had the chance to really acknowledge this other Kara, who shared her same face and body and name, and 99.9% of memories up until the trip through time that fragmented her reality in two. Not until now.

The four of them stayed in the lab together for some time: Brainy, Alex, and the two Supergirls. Once the next phase of Brainy's experiments kicked into full gear, though, he retreated back to his engineering wing to begin work on a new device — one that would merge both Kara's minds, syncing up their memories and creating two women with shared memories, rather than the disconnected, asynchronous versions that existed now. Alex had expressed her doubts at first, but soon came on board and needed to retreat back to her office for more paperwork and approvals.

That left Kara and herself, sitting side by side in silence.

"Look," she spoke, the one who had donned the red cloak and escaped from Siberia, "I appreciate what you did before."

The other Kara shook her head just slightly. "What's that?" It felt like the two women were whispering, and using body cues that were subtle beyond the perception of another human. They didn't need to expend much energy communicating with another mind so practically identical to their own.

"When you talked to Alex about..." she slowed her words, "About not treating me differently because of where I wound up after the time split. I'm sure you can sense this already, but it means a lot."

Kara smiled. Both of her did. "Well, I'm just trying to picture myself in your shoes." They both laughed at those words, and how ridiculous they sounded given the circumstances. "I was left to live my life here in National City without a care in the world, basically, and had no idea what trauma you were going through on the other side of the world. I can only imagine the pain and loneliness you felt, so to come home and feel...stigmatized because of it, that must be terrible."

It was strange, Kara thought, staring into her own eyes, but the experience was far from off-putting. If anything, she felt a warm comfort from being around someone she could truly trust.

"Well, about that..." The Kara averted her gaze. "I'll get over my memories of Siberia, in due time, I'm sure. I don't want you to feel obligated to do the mind merge that Brainy is suggesting."

The other Kara shook her head, "I don't feel obligated—"

"—It's very sweet, and thoughtful really, that you want to share the burden of these memories. I just would never ask you to do that."

There were a few moments of silence; one Kara feeling the weight of her past trauma, the other sensing a chance to make things right.

"Look," Kara spoke sweetly, raising a hand to place it on the shoulder of her twin. This was the first time they made contact, and it felt a bit uncanny to put physical tough — the sensation of flesh and bone — to this idea of a perfect duplicate. "Merging minds wouldn't have been my first idea, for many reasons. I understand what you're saying, and how challenging those memories were. But really, I think this is the only way we can both actually be happy."

The other looked up from the floor, locking eyes with her double once again. "What do you mean?"

"For the foreseeable future, Kara, there are two of us that share this life as one. We need to have equal claim, and at least for now, neither of us can be seen as 'lesser' or 'different' in the eyes of anyone, especially Alex. Once we sync up, starting from that point, we'll both remember feeling isolated in Siberia, but we'll also both share the memories of the days here in National City. Everything will be the same. We get to start from scratch, and work together to make this life play out however we want."

They both smiled in silence.

"I suppose it'll be nice," Kara mused to her counterpart, "Having a teammate in this. And with two of us, both with the same mind, think of everything we can accomplish."

They laughed. "Twice the Supergirl to help the city..."

"...And twice the Kara to keep up with our life here too."

Despite the worry and fear, it was settled. When Brainy came back into the room, the Kara's both shared their trust in his process and their eagerness to let the merge continue as planned.

"Wonderful," he said in a stilted voice. "Then we're ready to go."


	6. The Fusion of Kara Danvers

Kara laid down flat on the cool, silver slab of Brainy's lab in the DEO. She knew the android was well-intentioned, and found herself especially reassured knowing that Alex fully supported the procedure as well, but still couldn't help but think of herself less of a patient and more of a science experiment.

"Brainy, I hope you aren't taking too much pleasure in this."

Kara turned to her right and looked at the clone of herself as she spoke — the temporal duplicate created by her dire liberties taken with the timeline just a few weeks back. The other Kara looked identical, clad in matching Supergirl attire and laying flat on an matching metal table just a few meters away. She was smiling through the words, but Kara knew that expression all too well — this duplicate shared in her anxiety down to the last fiber of her being. At least she wasn't going through this alone.

Brainy was fluttering about the lab, tweaking the electronics on two matching pieces of futuristic headgear. "Kara Zor-El, please do not assume the worst of me. I do not take joy in the procedure in the slightest, although I will say," he paused, "That this type of engineering is rather novel. I find it quite simulating to explore new aspects of Kryptonian neuroscience."

"Great," the Kara on Brainy's left grimaced. She didn't look over to her time-double, but she could sense when that Kara smiled.

Kara never asked for details on the engineering at work, but when Alex entered and began probing Brainy for details, she was able to pick up most everything by just listening in. Brainy's tests had revealed that the two Kara's shared the exact same biological pattern, down to the neuron's in their brains, which presented the duo with a unique ability to map onto one other with tissue, cells, and molecules that could be synced up with the right sequence of electronic and magnetic signals. The headgear that Brainy had engineered would achieve this in a matter of seconds — simultaneously reading the minute signals of one Kara's mind and pulling the other's into a matching arrangement. 

Their biology would hardly change; just a few cellular structures shifting in each of their heads, resulting in a minor tingling sensation but no side-effects. Mentally, though, the experience would be quite bizarre: "No memories will be deleted, to use common vernacular," Brainy explained to Alex, standing conveniently between the two Karas. "Rather, memories will simply be added in, up until the point that both Karas share a complete, matching set of recollections. Both, then, will remember two sets of memories over the last few weeks. Both will recall landing in Siberia, but also their everyday lives in National City. Both will recall entering this lab twice, from two sets of eyes, before we take the headsets off and give them another chance to diverge."

"Diverge," Alex repeated. "Meaning what?"

"Well, once the headsets are removed, Kara — both of her — will begin forming new patterns, albeit from the same starting point. There is the option, then, of continuing the syncs on a daily or weekly schedule, whichever you all prefer."

Kara furrowed her brow. "More syncs? Is that really necessary?"

"Yeah," the other Kara chimed in, "I thought this was only a one-time thing."

"It makes sense," Alex answered, but looked at Brainy to confirm her suspicions as she spoke. "The greatest danger from this duplication is not the biological effect, but the emotional one. Feeling as though one Kara is different than the other, or for whatever reason, less of a Supergirl, could lead to stress and anxiety that I don't think any of us want to go through."

Alex spoke sweetly with those words, and Kara knew that just as much as she was talking about her own emotional strife, it applied to Kara as well. The more similar that the two Kara's could remain — over the next days, months, even years if need-be — the healthier their relationships would be.

Nobody spoke for the next minute as Brainy applied the series of diodes to Karas' heads, all wired together in a clunky-looking piece of headwear. The metal felt abrasive, and cold, but nothing Kara couldn't go through. 

"Whenever you're ready, Kara." There was a hint more of emotion to Brainy's voice now, as though he genuinely wanted to make the Karas feel soothed during the next stressful few moments.

"We are," one Kara spoke.

"Let's do this," the other echoed.

There was no pain when Brainy flipped the switch, but to Kara, it felt like her mind was thrown in a washing machine. She could hear Brainy flip off the electronics after a few seconds, but still for the next long moments, her brain felt heavy between her ears. She recalled everything from the last two weeks in stereo — she remembered landing in Siberia and celebrating at home with Alex. She remembered going about her daily Supergirl life in National City, and at the same time, she remembered donning the red cloak and stalking Supergirl from afar. She remembered confronting herself for the first time in Alex's apartment, and remembered being the confronted. 

Most bizarre of all, she remembered both sides of her conversation just a few minutes ago, and reaching out to place a hand on her own shoulder. 

She didn't realize that Brainy had come to take the diodes off her head until, bringing a hand up to steady her dizzying vision, she felt her forehead cleared of the electronic nest. Kara struggled to sit up, swinging her legs off the side of the table and slowly opening her eyes.

She was staring at herself, which was to be expected, but not quite like this. Both Karas remembered entering the laboratory a few minutes ago — twice — and laying on both the right and left slabs of metal. 

"Woah."  
"Woah." Both voices spoke in complete synchronicity.

"How do you feel?" Alex asked calmly.

"We'll be fine..."  
"We'll be fine —" Again, they spoke in identical voices, timed to match with uncanny precision. "I'm sorry," one spoke to break the sync.

"That's okay," the other replied. She turned to look at Alex, "It just takes us a few moments to sort everything out."

Her sister smiled. "Well I'm glad you're feeling okay, because Kara Danvers, you've got work to do."


	7. Double Duty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two Kara Danvers are finally ready to embark on their new "double" life, which is about to kick into high gear at a fancy CatCo gala.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well I had initially only brainstormed up until this point in the story, but since people like the direction, I figure we can keep exploring this world! Let me know your thoughts :)

After the last few hours at the DEO, the last thing Kara had expected from the evening would be donning a dress and high-heels before heading to CatCo for a gala. And yet, here she was.

"Kara, would you try to keep up please? We're already late." Alex reached out a hand to grab Kara's and drag her to keep up the pace. The two had just taken a cab uptown, but with the traffic and road closures, decided to walk the last few blocks towards CatCo. Already they could hear the music echoing through the city streets. "I can't believe you forgot about this party, Lena's been planning it all month."

"I'm sorry," Kara shrugged. "I've had a lot on my mind recently."

Alex smiled, "Well Brainy said you were fully back to normal, so can you please stop dilly-dallying?"

Kara released Alex's hand and planted her feet. "I just," she shook her head, "I feel weird getting an invite to a party and leaving my other self in the dust, you know?"

"Kara," Alex was getting annoyed. "What's the benefit of having a literal alter-ego if you can't embrace the double life? I flipped a coin, you won. Tonight you're Kara Danvers and she's Supergirl."

"How is that fair, though?"

"Well you can't BOTH come to a party, Kara!" Alex grabbed back to Kara's wrist and pulled her down the street, knowing full well that if Kara wanted to resist, it wouldn't be a question. Still, they started to make headway. "And look, for the first time in years, you can actually focus on being Kara Danvers tonight without needing to keep the streets safe. The other you has that covered."

Kara looked up to the sky, as if she'd catch a glimpse at herself hovering above. "Wouldn't it be safer with two Supergirls, though?"

The two turned a corner, now in full-sight of CatCo's front lobby, converted for the evening into a bumping party to celebrate Gaurdian's reveal to the public. "In theory, yes," Alex admitted under her breath. "But the city sometimes needs Kara Danvers too."

Inside the large glass doors of the lobby, the large atrium was abuzz with National City's finest dressed to the nines. The lights were dim, but between neon trim on every corner and large spotlights suspended from the rafters, Kara was able to make out a few dozen faces from across the room that she knew from work, the DEO, or just from living her life as Supergirl. Lena was standing at the bar chatting with James, but catching a glimpse of Kara as she entered, offered a quick wave and a smile.

Before getting comfortable, Kara found herself instinctively scanning the room for any vulnerabilities — blind spots, bottlenecks, or big structures that could become dangerous with a hostile intrusion. Alex took quick notice.

"Kara, relax! You don't need to protect us tonight."

Reluctantly, Kara took her advice and joined her sister in their walk across the party towards the bar. James was staying sober tonight, but Lena was in the mood to party. Together with the sisters, in a quick few minutes they were all at least two shots deep before Lena was quick to head to the dancefloor and pull Kara in tow. 

And slowly, Kara felt herself beginning to let loose. "I can be here," she thought to herself, "I don't need to pull double-duty tonight." And it started to work, as she let her attention drift from the weak-points in the room and focus on the music and her friends.

That's when the gunshots rang out.

"Nobody move!" Entering from the front of the room, two men brandishing heavy alien-looking rifles were blocking the only entrance. Through the screams of the crowd, even Kara could barely make out their next words — "We want the Guardian" seemed to be the broad vein of their shouting.

But even before James could spring into action, a blue and red blur swept through the entryway knocking the two men asunder.

"Supergirl!" Lena shouted, and for a brief moment, Kara feared that her identity had been compromised. Just a second later she remembered the reality of her new uncanny double life.

"Lena," Kara spoke to her friend, "Run! Out the back, now!"

Over the next few minutes, Kara had to fight every urge of her body not to leap into action herself. Three other men with alien armaments entered the party next, but Supergirl was quick to contain the threat. With swift dodges and swifter blows, she neutralized one intruder after the other, making sure to funnel all arrant firepower up away from the vulnerable crowd.

And Kara Danvers, for once, found herself cowering amongst the masses, watching Supergirl save the day. It was all an act — at the moment anyone was in real danger, she wouldn't be able to help herself from acting as a human shield — but she knew Supergirl's strengths better than anyone, and knew that this heroine had everything perfectly under control. No need for backup quite yet.

The whole experience was utterly surreal. She had BEEN Supergirl for years; had saved dozens of lives, donned the cape hundreds of times, but she had never been witness to the spectacle of the iconic woman kick ass first-hand. It was mesmerizing — so much so, that Kara failed to realize that a stray blast from an alien cannon had ricocheted upwards, blasting apart the roof above her. A second later, the ten-ton slab of concrete came tumbling down.

And with another blur or red and blue, Supergirl threw herself between Kara and the danger from above. The concrete shattered over the Kryptonian's shoulders, shielding her doppelganger from the debris.

Kara simply stared upwards at the hero, eyes agape. "Thank you," was all she could whisper. She knew the falling rubble wouldn't have hurt her — she was still invulnerable, even in her street-clothes — but it would have undoubtedly caused a stir of unwanted questions for innocent Kara Danvers to survive a life-threatening injury in front of a room of party-goers.

"No problem," Supergirl smiled. She winked at Kara before speeding back to deliver the few final blows to the party's deadly, unwanted guests.

Kara found herself flooded with feelings she never knew before. She stared, nearly in awe, at this woman clad in her iconic blue suit, red cape, and emblematic S proudly stamped on her chest. Kara had always been proud of her abilities, and her selflessness, but suddenly she found herself...admiring Supergirl. Admiring herself.

She had lived the role of Supergirl from the inside, never thinking twice of what it meant to those that she protected. Kara had felt confidence, sure, but it became magnified now, seeing herself as the hero from a new, uncanny vantage point. She saw the strength, and the poise, and the beauty, and the magnificence that her own visage embodied.

Kara Danvers had never been prouder to be Supergirl.


End file.
